RALEIGH, N.C. — As Vice President Kamala Harris prepared to formally accept the Democratic Party's nomination for president Thursday night, it was North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper who took the stage to pump up the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
The high-profile speaking slot illustrated the key role North Carolina is expected to play in this year's presidential election. It also underscored the personal friendship between Cooper and Harris, one that the two formed while working as state attorneys general together a decade ago.
Cooper spoke of that history Thursday, telling a story about when Harris first took office as the California attorney general in 2011. He and other AGs had been working on a legal settlement with big banks over the 2008 housing and crisis, Cooper said, but Harris didn't like the terms they were nearing a final deal on.
Even though it wasn't the easy choice, Cooper said, she put her foot down and demanded better terms — and it worked, resulting in the banks paying billions of dollars more to people who had lost their homes in foreclosure.
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